She Has Changed
by Joan2
Summary: Draco Malfoy meets a girl from his past, but she has changed, and so has he.
1. Chapter 1

She Has Changed Chapter 1 Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter. Just this little side plot, sort of. Rating: PG.-13, but it may change. Summary: Draco Malfoy encounters a girl from his past, but she has changed, and so has he.  
  
Fifth-year Draco Malfoy grinned at Crabbe and Goyle as they watched the sorting. As Smithfield, Anne was put into Hufflepuff, he snidely remarked, "Well, would you look at that. Fresh, tender Huff'n'Puffs to pick on. Should be fun." He snickered, and Crabbe and Goyle idiotically joined in, not really getting the joke. ***  
  
"You stupid little Hufflepuff's, what's the matter? Crying for your mums?" Draco Malfoy sneered at two first-years. They, after some tormenting and their books being knocked on the floor at their feet, had started to cry in fear and shame. "What?" he continued, "Can't even reply 'cause you're too busy sniveling?"  
"Smithfield, Dupont," a new girl's voice interrupted from behind, "what's going on? Is this snake bothering you?" A few sniffles and nods were the only reply from the young girls. "Well then, I'll have to do something about that. Five points from Slytherin." The voice was filled with spite. Draco turned, his trademark sneer plastered on his face.  
"Look here, you.." Upon turning, he found a girl exactly his height facing him, one hand on her hip, the other lose and gripping her wand (twelve inches, holly wood, dragon heartstring), one eyebrow raised. She had layered blonde and wore glasses that were in front of intense blue-grey eyes, ever-darkening with anger. Draco looked the girl, obviously a Hufflepuff, up and down. Her black robes were open, revealing long legs and a figure not well-hidden by her uniform. Now this is a sexy girl, Draco thought. Immediately his expression changed to what he thought was a charming smile.  
"Well, hello. I don't believe we've met. I'm.."  
"I know who you are, young Malfoy," the girl spat at him. "And I believe that what you were just engaged in is called bullying. Thus the five points taken off. And in case your apparently excellent memory fails you, I am Diane."  
Draco was taken aback by the sarcastic tone in her voice. Being the stud that he was, he was used to girls falling at his feet as soon as a smile was flashed in their direction. She, however, dared to talk back to him. His tone quickly changed. "Who do you think you are to try and control a Malfoy?" he cried indignantly.  
"Someone much more powerful than you. And a prefect," she snapped back. Turning to the first-years, "If he dares bother you again, tell me at once." She turned to go. "Oh, and five more points off of Slytherin for your cheek and not remembering me." She was gone, leaving two first- years scurrying away and a dumbfounded Malfoy.  
"You should know better than to mess with her, Malfoy," said an approaching Blaise Zambini.  
"Who is she?" he replied.  
"Only the most ambitious, intelligent, and cunning person outside of Slytherin. Diane de Chêne is her name. And she rules Hufflepuff House with an iron fist, yet they all love her. She's a sixth-year, but she's really our age. She skipped first year."  
De Chêne, Draco thought, my old playmate. A rich family. The de Chêne family had been at all of the elite social gatherings he had been to as a child. Diane had been one of the few girls he was allowed to socialize with. Her family was very rich, as much as the Malfoys, but neutral in the Voldemort issue. Originally from Switzerland, they were pacifist, which explained Diane's hatred of bullies. She had not liked it when they were young either. Nonetheless, he had liked her very much then. There had been talk of betrothal at one point, but it had been broken off since Lord de Chêne did not like Lucius Malfoy's ties to the Dark Arts. Oh yes, he remembered Diane now. She had changed, for the better in his eyes. *** At lunch that day Draco made sure that he had sat facing the Hufflepuff table, right across from Diane. He observed her carefully, noting how she and her friends enjoyed themselves immensely, laughing and chatting. She, apparently, was the driving force of the group. At one point, Diane noticed him observing her and changed the conversation quickly. It soon became obvious that she was mocking him by the way she kept smirking and then laughing. A few of her friends kept sneaking glances at him, but Draco kept his focus on Diane. As the laughter subsided, she looked straight at him and raised her trademark eyebrow. She then ignored him for the rest of the meal. Draco seethed. Oh, how she had changed. *** 


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2 Rating: PG.-13, still Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter. Just this little side plot, sort of.  
  
A black owl swooped down and dropped a letter at Diane de Chêne's place. She observed the unfamiliar owl. Who could this be, she wondered. Father does not send letters on Thursdays. She opened the scroll of parchment. Inside, in perfect, slanting handwriting said,  
  
Hello Diane. Perhaps you remember me. My memory indeed has returned,  
and I know who you are now. Maybe we could have a chat over old  
times? Take a trip down memory lane? Meet me at eight in the front  
hall. We'll take a walk and have a talk. Be on time, I don't  
appreciate lateness.  
D. Malfoy  
  
The nerve of him! Well, Draco had certainly changed into one hell of a brat. Oh, she would be on time, all right. ***  
It was 8:32, and Draco was still waiting in the entrance hall for Diane. He was seething mad. No one stood up Draco Malfoy! Just then, he heard voices coming in from outside. He turned and saw Diane de Chêne walking in holding hands and deep in conversation with a seventh-year Ravenclaw he did not know. The pair saw him and stopped. Diane turned towards the boy, said a few words and kissed him on the cheek. The boy glanced at Draco, turned back to her, said his good-byes, and left.  
Oh, that bitch. She casually walked up to him and said, "Yes? Did you want something?"  
"Well, at first, I wanted to slap you, but now I think a few scathing words and storming off will do just fine. I don't like who you have become." Draco turned and headed back towards the dungeons.  
"Wait, Draco, wait," she called after him, running up and putting her hand on his shoulder. "Before you go you have to know something."  
"Oh? And what's that," Draco said, stopping.  
"I can't stand Ravenclaws."  
"What? What on earth does that have to do with anything?"  
"I can't stand Ravenclaws. They're too bookish, no sense of humor at all. And definitely not boyfriend material." Draco turned, looking at her curiously.  
"You mean you weren't on a date with him?"  
"No. That was merely a strategy to piss you off and teach you a lesson. You can't just go ordering people around if you want them to be civil with you. Didn't your mother ever teach you the words 'please', 'thank you', and 'I'm sorry'?"  
"No," Draco retorted.  
"Oh right, those were always beneath Narcissia." At that, Draco's temper snapped.  
"Look, did you come here to humiliate me and insult my family or what?"  
"Now that's the Draco I knew, I recognize that bad temper." "A lot has changed since we were children, Diane." "Yes, yes it has. In more ways than you know," she replied, looking at the floor. Draco abruptly looked at her startled. He knew that tone. He had learned that when Diane stopped speaking without any joy in her voice, things had gotten really bad. He led her to a stone bench and sat her down. Draco lifted her chin and forced her to look straight at him. "What happened, Diane? You need to tell me." She looked away briefly, and then sighed. "My mother is dead, Draco. And my father." Her voice faded off and her throat stopped up. She regained her composure and spoke, emotionlessly, "My father has gotten worse, if that is possible." He understood instantly what had happened. Narcissia Malfoy had once accidentally let slip that Lord de Chêne was a violent man. He also had once seen some scars on Diane that she had refused to speak about. Lord de Chêne had most likely killed her mother, and had taken to venting all of his anger on Diane now. He bowed his head. Lucius was not father of the year, but he had never laid a hand on Draco, only harsh words. Draco rested an arm around her shoulders. "I'm sorry." "Why? It has nothing to do with you." Her eyes were blank. "It has everything to do with me, Diane." He swallowed before continuing. "You were my best friend. My only true friend, and I want you to be that again." He paused, swallowed, and then spoke very quietly, "And maybe more." Diane stood up to leave. She turned back to him, slowly. "It has been too long for things to pick up where they left off. If you want me, you'll have to do more than just send me rude letters and pat me on the back. I am no longer as trusting as I used to be." She walked out, leaving a very surprised Draco. After all, she was the only girl to ever reject him. 


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3 Rating: PG.-13, still Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter. Just this little side plot, sort of.  
  
Diane returned quickly to her dormitories. After all, it was getting late and what example would she be as a prefect if she was out of bed after hours? She briefly chatted with some of her housemates, gently scolded a few second-years to get to bed, and walked into her dorm and went to bed. Sleep, however, did not come easily. She found her thoughts plagued by a strange silver-haired Slytherin with such intense silver eyes that they could be hard to look at. She sighed, and rolled over.  
The last time that she had seen him, they both had been ten years old. That had been the night that Lord de Chêne had broken off any talk of betrothal between the two. Naturally, the pair had been eavesdropping and knew what was going on immediately. As the argument began to end between the two aristocrats, they had run off to Draco's room to hide under his bed until Lord de Chêne came and found them in a furious rage. While they had waited, for a long time, they whispered back and forth. ***  
"Do you think we'll ever see each other again?" Diane asked.  
"Who knows? Our parents will likely try to keep us apart, but there's a chance we'll go to the same school."  
"That would only happen if we both went to Hogwarts, since I would never go to Durmstrang and you would never go to Beauxbatons. We only have a one-in-four chance, you know."  
"Do you want to see me again?" She was silent for a moment.  
"You're the only real friend I've ever had, I almost was betrothed to you, and you don't know the answer to that question?"  
"I will miss you, too, Diane." He paused for a few seconds. "Would you really have agreed to marry me, because I would have married you?" ***  
She never got a chance to answer, as her father had barged into the room at that moment, but it would not have mattered. At that time, Diane had not known her answer. Now, after years of reflection, she knew that she would have married Draco, no questions asked. He had been all that she had ever known. The ten-year-old Diane would have held onto that tightly, and never looked back.  
But the question remained; did she still care for him like that? She could not deny that she was attracted to him, or that he was intelligent enough for her. On the other hand, he now had a mean streak in him that was not there before, thanks to Lucius, no doubt. For all she knew, he could have aspirations to become a Death Eater and follow his father into darkness. Well, if he wanted her, he would have to prove that he still was kind-hearted and wanted nothing to do with Voldemort. Simple demands, she rationalized, and fell asleep, soon afterwards. ***  
The next morning, the black owl was once again swooping down towards Diane. A letter was dropped in her hands with the same handwriting as before. This time, all it said was:  
What do I have to do to get you to trust me again?  
  
A/N: Diane de Chêne's name means Divine One and Of Oak. She is the divine one of oak and Draco is the dragon of bad faith. I thought that was kind of a funny accident. 


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4 Rating: PG.-13, still Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter. Just this little side plot, sort of.  
  
At lunch Draco Malfoy received an owl. He read it with an apparent mixture of emotions. Any observer could the hope and frustration that crossed his features. He then finished the letter, folded it, put it in his pocket, and stood up with a marked look of determination on his face. He strode over to the Gryffindor table, and faced the three people who he hated most: Hermione Granger, Ron Weasley, and Harry Potter. He stood there with his arms crossed and a blank expression until they noticed him.  
"What do you want, Malfoy?" Potter asked, with a guarded tone of voice.  
"To apologize." Weasley immediately started choking on the piece of chicken he was eating. The other two simply went pale. Granger recovered her wits first.  
"For what? For being the snarky bugger you are?" He turned to her.  
"Well," Draco paused. They looked at him with anticipation. "Yes," he sighed. "I have been a snarky bugger to you all without a thought. I have been prejudiced against Mudbloods," Granger winced at that, "prejudiced against those who are less fortunate and idiotic," Weasley turned bright red, "and just plain mean," Draco finished, facing Potter. "I'm sorry." Weasley instantly fainted and fell off of the bench, catching the attention of the entire Great Hall.  
Professor McGonagall immediately rushed over, bending at Weasley's side.  
"What happened here," she demanded. She then caught sight of Draco and began, "Mr. Malfoy."  
"Malfoy did no wrong here, Professor," Potter interjected, looking straight at Draco with, for once, a look of respect. Draco turned, and swept out of the Great Hall, oblivious to a pair of eyes watching him. ***  
  
Draco was pacing around the Slytherin common room. What he had just done there, in the Great Hall, was the most difficult thing that she could demand of him. In saying what he had, no, he had not only said it, but believed it, he had simply denied all that Lucius had ever taught him. 'Simply'. Draco was just so confused he could cry. Instead, he burst into hysterics with tears running down his face. He fell to his knees and clutched his stomach. When at last he regained his composure, he stood up and saw the three Slytherins standing before him with looks of pure confusion on their faces. Pansy, Crabbe, and Goyle. It was Pansy who spoke first. "Draco? Are you ok? Do you want me to take you to the hospital wing, or write Lucius?" Then it hit him. That would be exactly what he would do. He rose. "No, thank you, Pansy. I shall write my father myself." He then walked up the stairs and into his dormitory. ***  
Lucius Malfoy opened the owl he had received, no doubt from his son, bragging about how he had tortured people and full of explanations why that Granger's grades were better than his. Instead, he read:  
  
Father,  
I hope this letter finds you in horrible health. Good news: I  
think I'm in love with Diane de Chêne, Lord de Chêne's daughter.  
You may remember her. More news: I don't want to be a Death  
Eater. There is no real reason to hate muggles or those who are  
muggle-born. Voldemort, that hypocrite, himself is what you  
call a 'mudblood'. He is your Lord, not mine. I wish for  
nothing to do with the dark arts and pray never to see you  
again. Send Mother my greetings, I hope she is well, though I  
doubt it, since she has to share a bed with you.  
  
Your son,  
Draco  
  
Lucius promptly crumpled the letter and threw it to the floor, where a house-elf named Dori would find it later and rejoice to learn that Draco had rebelled. He put one hand on his head and swiftly emptied the glass of wine that sat on his desk. This is all her fault, he thought. Those stupid de Chêne's and their morals. She corrupted him. 


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5 Rating: PG.-13, still Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter. Just this little side plot, sort of.  
  
Draco Malfoy woke up the next morning, lying face-down on his four- poster. As he arose with a groan and remembered who and where he was, he also noticed that he had not changed his clothes last night. He reached into his pocket and pulled out and re-read the letter that Diane had sent him yesterday.  
Draco,  
Let me tell you a story. When I was young I had one friend. Just one  
friend. He was a beautiful child, probably the most beautiful there  
was. He was full of life and mischief, but he would never harm anyone  
he cared about, or who they cared about. He was fair and loyal, even  
though he did have a cynical streak in him. He believed in me, and I  
in him. You wish for us to be as we were. Find him, and bring him  
back.  
Diane de Chêne  
  
For the love of a girl whom he had only just reunited with, he had made amends with his worst enemies and estranged the man who had absolute control over his life.  
"God, I hope she's worth it," he whispered quietly aloud. ***  
  
She was running down a hall with marble columns. She kept looking back over her shoulder and seeing her father running after her. No matter how hard she ran, she never moved, but he seemed to be catching up to her. In his hand, was a whip, and he kept cracking it over and over. At last, she found that she could run no more and fell to the marble floor. As her father got close, she began screaming and he raised his whip. ***  
  
There was a knock on Draco's door. He opened it, and Professor Snape was standing there.  
"Your presence is requested in the hospital wing."  
  
When he arrived, he was greeted by Madame Pomfrey. "It's Miss de Chêne," she began. "She was found in the entrance hall, on the floor, screaming, but still asleep. On her back were some open wounds and her nightgown was ripped. When we brought her here, she calmed down some, but she started calling your name over and over. She's awake now, and her cuts have been treated. You may go see her." Diane lay on a bed, on her stomach, with bandages on her back, looking pale. She smiled at him when he approached. "Hey," she said. "You couldn't resist putting Weasley in the hospital wing one more time, couldn't you?" "That's not all I did." "Oh? Pray tell, what else?" "I told Lucius that he and the Dark Lord can go to hell, essentially." Diane turned a shade whiter, if possible. "Draco, promise me that you will go to Dumbledore and have him protect you." "As soon as you tell me what happened to you." He paused. "And don't try to tell me that you fell like last time; I suspected your father then and I suspect him now." She turned her head away from him. "Diane, I have given up everything I had to make you trust me. Why can't you tell me?" There was a long pause. "My father sends me nightmares. Only, what he does to me in there affects me out here. That's why I was sleepwalking, that's what the wounds are." "Then I guess there will be two of us going to see Dumbledore." She gripped his arm suddenly. "No! I can't. And you can't tell anyone about this either, Draco. You just can't!" "He's not going to hurt you Diane and I won't either. What's more, I am going to make sure that that bastard can't ever touch you again. Understand?" She nodded, crying. He wiped her tears away with his thumb and kissed her forehead. "Madame Pomfrey wishes for me to stay in here until tomorrow morning, but I will come with you then, ok?" He nodded, stood up, and left Diane, who was still crying. ***  
  
She was running down a hall with marble columns. She kept looking back over her shoulder and seeing her father running after her. No matter how hard she ran, she never moved, but he seemed to be catching up to her. In his hand, was a whip, and he kept cracking it over and over. At last, she found that she could run no more and fell to the marble floor. But it wasn't a marble floor. It was something soft and warm, and held her tight. ***  
  
Diane awoke with a start. There was darkness all around her, and she was kneeling on something soft. There was a pair of arms around her, and she had her head resting on a shoulder.  
"Hey, it's ok. I'm here, now, he can't hurt you anymore," A voice whispered. She began sobbing uncontrollably, and fell asleep that way. ***  
  
Diane very slowly opened her eyes. She was surrounded by green and silver and there was an arm around her waist. Against her back, she felt a warm presence. She sat up slowly and turned around. The presence was Draco Malfoy. In stirring, she had awoken him. He sat up, wearing only pants. She blushed, and avoided his eyes. Still sleepy and taking in her surroundings, she spoke. "How did I get here?" "Last night, you ran in here crying, and screaming. You just climbed on my bed and held onto me until you fell asleep. I didn't have the heart to move you." "Oh. The only thing that I remember is." her voice trailed off. "You had a dream about your father again, didn't you? Well, go get dressed, after breakfast the two of us are going to see Dumbledore." She nodded, and left the Slytherin dormitory, red-faced, leaving Draco to watch her go. 


End file.
